As if former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney didn’t have enough problems already, a story that connects him to the Ku Klux Klan has now entered the cable news bloodstream. AmericaBlog noticed that a phrase Romney has used, “Keep America American,” was also a rallying cry of the Klan in the 1920s. Now, MSNBC has reported on the story, which may prove hard for the cable news punditocracy to resist.

With the announcement last week that long time MSNBC star Norah O’Donnell is jumping ship to CBS, many insiders are now asking what is going on over at the Peacock network? On air talent jumping between networks is nothing new but the sheer number of recent defectors both on air and off from NBC News and CNBC has to make you wonder whether there is something bigger at play here.

NBC News doesn’t have a start date or a name for its new prime-time news show to be led by Nightly News Brian Williams, but it does have an executive producer, as of today. Rome Hartman, who helped create the BBC’s American flagship newscast, BBC World News America, has signed on with NBC in an announcement from the network today. ”

Amid plenty of talk about the new owners coming onboard at NBC, there was a moment during today’s NBC Universal “town hall meeting” that jumps out. (And no, we’re not talking about the new corporate logo that sidelines the NBC peacock from its corporate perch, though it remains a fixture of the NBC brand)

As Mediabistro’s Alex Weprin reports, new CEO Steve Burke was asked–by none other than NBC News anchor Brian Williams–what exactly led to the departure from MSNBC of Keith Olbermann.

Earlier today Comcast released a memo that officially announced the senior management team for the company after it completes its acquisition of NBC Universal. The management of the NBC News division remains largely unchanged, with both NBC News and CNBC presidents, Steve Capus and Mark Hoffman respectively, staying in place and reporting to the new CEO Steve Burke. But eyebrows are certain to be raised over the omission of current MSNBC president Phil Griffin from the memo, as well as the line “Steve Capus will continue to serve as President of NBC News/MSNBC.” Update: Comcast clarifies.

Among the many narratives that that has come from the whole Shirley Sherrod saga, perhaps the most entertaining has been the resurrection of the bitter rivalry between Fox News and MSNBC. Keith Olbermann and Rachel Maddow have both launched vicious assaults for what they saw as FNC’s role in the Sherrod scandal, and last night, Bill O’Reilly fired back, saying of his rivals at NBC, “That’s why (the) character assassins do what they do. if you can’t beat them, slime them. “

NBC News has enjoyed lengthy success with its flagship programs – the Today show, Nightly News and Meet The Press – all consistently #1 in their timeslots.

But now the network is shaking things up behind the scenes, with a new marketing strategy. Mediaite talked to NBC News President Steve Capus today about their new media push, changes in the industry, Fox News and more.

Yesterday I wrote a piece for AOL News about the Times Square Bomb story (or, almost-bomb story), and the trip it had taken from “Lone Wolf” to dude with the wherewithal to hop an Emirates flight to Dubai by paying cash at the airport. One day later, it’s become dude with the wherewithal to hop an Emirates flight to Dubai by paying cash at the airport, and by the way it’s looking more and more like he was bankrolled by the Taliban.

WHCD weekend may be over, but the photo evidence lingers on – and man, do we have photo evidence. Take a tour with Mediaite through the pre-parties, post-parties hobnobbing, handshaking and jockeying on Washington’s biggest night. Warning: Some of the photos are of Scott Brown. Your heart may palpitate.

It was a big day on the set of “Meet The Press” this past Sunday, for two reasons: It marked the beginning of the broadcast in HD, and it was the first show to be shot on the show’s brand-new set. The move signaled a new era – and was yet another step away from the old one, and former host Tim Russert.

In a lengthy, wide-ranging piece in Broadcasting & Cable about the Sunday show ratings battle, NBC News President Steve Capus weighs in on the Chris Wallace White House snub in September.

And it sounds like something of a defense of Fox.

A look at the Power Grid this week reveals a few fixtures that never waver. But just behind them in the rest of the top ten all it takes is a big scoop or scandal to send ripples through the rest of the rankings. Here are the big shake-ups from the past week and a look at what caused them:

Americans for Limited Government and NBC News have found themselves in a little he said–she said over an email from Dateline producer Jane Stone in response to some ALG media outreach. Do accusations that Stone wrote a message reading ‘Bite me Jew Boy’ from her Blackberry hold water? Or is ALG just desperate for buzz?

When people talk about bias on cable news, they are usually referring to the political leanings of the networks’ hosts, pundits and reporters. But recently discussion has centered more on the bias imposed by corporate influence and interests. Brian Stelter and Steve Rendall discuss at Gelf Magazine’s Media Circus, “The Corporate Influence on Cable News.”

Welcome to Mediaite – the place for news and opinion on TV, print, and online media. Why did I launch this site and what is my role? Good questions! Indulge me…